Win was one of the best says Johnson
By Chris Marais, Scrum's Lions Editor
June 30, 2001

The British Lions took a massive step to towards winning the Test series on Saturday evening when they beat Australia 13-29 at the Gabba in Brisbane.

The build up had been far from ideal for Graham Henry's men with reports of discord and low morale in the camp.

The win has meant the reported player dissatisfaction with the management has been glossed over, with captain Martin Johnson saying: "that was one of the best Test performances I have ever been involved in."

"It's been a hard tour and then have been a couple of grumbles from players," he continued, "but all the effort is worth it when you get results like that."

"It's what touring is all about, coming through the tough times."

Flanker Richard Hill was philosophical about the behind the scenes ructions. "Players have to realise that they have to make sacrifices, and tonight's result speaks volumes for the quality of the squad."

Australian coach Rod Macqueen was magnanimous in defeat, conceding: the Lions "played some very good football". Graham Henry continued that theme saying: "we played very good rugby for long periods of time, but there are things to work on as we didn't play that well in the last twenty".

37,460 people were at the game and the massed Lions support provided an almost home atmosphere for the tourists and man on the match Brian O'Driscoll was mindful of the achievement saying: "winning a Test match for the Lions speaks for itself."

© Scrum.com

Live Sports

Communication error please reload the page.

ABOUT COOKIES

To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.

More Info Here Cookie Choices